The Idealist: Intuition and Feelings

The Kiersey sorter returned my test with the result of an Idealist (NF.) According to the sorter, Idealists are individuals on a quest for self-discovery and self-actualization. Because their passion is so great for this quest, Idealists attempt to transfer that passion into others. They enjoy working with others and providing themselves as a maximizer for the development of others skills. Idealists recognize the strengths of others and put them to good use.

The letters themselves, N and F, tell a story, as well. The "N" stands for intuitive. Idealists go with their gut and act spontaneously. Using intuition as a guide, idealists can read people rather well, adding to their ability to maximize the potential of others when collaborating on a project. The "F" stands for feeling. Not only do these idealists follow the directions of their gut, but also the direction of their heart. Emotions are strong and dictative for idealists. Their sentimentality and capability for empathy make them great candidates for positions that work closely with people.

I have taken many personality sorters similiar to this Kiersey test, including the full Myers-Briggs assessment that deeply analyzes a person's character inside and out. The results of all of these personality tests have been very similar to the aforementioned characteristics of this particular test: reliance on intuition and emotion, a knack for working with people, etc.

Photo by: Stu Pendousmat

Insurance companies like Allstate use an approach that would peak the interest of the NF personality type. In one example of a television commercial, a man is visited by his future self and told of all the accomplishments he will have in his life. However, if he wants to ensure these accomplishments, he needs to look after himself with life insurance. The campaign played off of the emotions of the audience by setting the commercial in a hospital nursery, all of the newborns around. This ties the notion of purchasing life insurance to the care for another human being. the commercial capitalizes on the ambition of NF personalities.

To view the sorter and see your own results, visit: http://www.kiersey.com/

LEAP vs NCLB

Picture Credit:  Cyroulette

Imagine that: another debate that emerged between liberals and conservatives.The arena of this face-off is in American education. On one hand rests the failed NCLB Act of the Bush era, on the other is LEAP, a liberal arts education inititative. Taking a more enveloping approach, LEAP is much more successful at providing students with a strong and sturdy educational background

In 2001, George W. Bush and his administration saw the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act. Aimed at pushing the public education system forward into the 21st century so that this country could compete with other emerging superpowers, a theme that has since permeated itself into practically every political subfaction, NCLB created a set of standards for all schools in America to meet...or else.

This act told schools that all of their students's scores when averaged must meet a ceratin level of competencies in major subject areas (english, math, etc.) or the school will be subject to a loss of funding:  negative reinforcement at its finest.

In a separate, yet similar vein, Liberal Education and America's Promise is a 2005 initiative that aims to provide students with a set of competencies. LEAP does not rely on a narrow focus on certain areas of study to accomplish mastery of these competecies, which is what segregates it philisophically from NCLB. LEAP aims to overlap understanding of concepts in multiple subjects.

These two schools of thought both seek to accomplish a group of core competencies. However, the ways in which they go about this accomplishment make them very distinct. NCLB stresses the importance of annual standardized testing to measure the success of schools. LEAP is much less rigorous, seeking to lessen the rigidity between subjects and allow knowledge to move more freely throughout education.